Dear Insiders,
The Italian government decreed by law: As of 6 August, no one will be allowed to enter a restaurant without a vaccination certificate. The next day, 500,000 Italians made an appointment to be vaccinated. And it was the same in France: The day after the health passport was announced, 1.1 million people signed up for vaccination; by the end of the week, that number had risen to 3.7 million. There you go! Only the Germans are still debating the issue... Presumably until the holiday season and the federal elections are over.
The tendency to simply sit problems out is also a characteristic of many hoteliers. Even in the boom years, they already knew that you had to pay employees more and create more attractive working conditions for them. Many did, others simply ignored things.
The price has now fallen to be paid - all around the globe. Figures from USA, UK and France show how desperate the situation is. I'll just mention just one shocking figure: Over 50% of former employees in the industry who are currently looking for another job say: Neither a raise nor any other incentive would motivate them to return to their old restaurant, bar or hotel job.
Sarah Douag reports on the conditions behind the international figures and describes the consequences in the three countries. At the same time, Sylvie Konzack is trying to work out just how hard the boomerang will return to hit in Germany. Hoteliers and headhunters report. Yes, there will be a race for employees, and this is coming at the worst possible time, in the middle of the crisis, in the balancing act between helpful short-time allowance & weak revenues, rising guest numbers & necessary salary increases.
Fortunately, despite all the acute problems, there are still people like Alexander Eisner and his Atomis Hotels who want to really step on the gas in the hotel industry. Romania also wants to step on the gas: despite Corona, plans for mega-tourism projects and hotels continue to develop there, following the pre-Corona pattern. Macy Marvel on the boom in a little-noticed country.
Human resources, today, is an expression that carries with it a completely different connotation to that used by legitimate business, namely: human trafficking. Perhaps this affects us in Europe less than other countries, but it is still a serious issue. The WTTC has published a report on today's "World Day Against Trafficking in Persons" and is thus sending out a clear signal. As a part of ESG targets, we will hear more about this issue in Europe in the future.
This brings us to our think tank on "Sustainability & Digitalisation". One will no longer work without the other. Investors, operators and IT experts will have to cooperate in the future. The technology ensures that operational costs are reduced, which puts leaseholders in a position to pay higher rents and thus convinces the investor to invest more. That is the lever of success. The drivers behind this are the new consumers and sensors that communicate with each other.
Now you want to know what works and what doesn't? Then listen in as CTO Floor Bleeker of Accor, Andreas Ewald of Engel & Völkers Hotel Consulting and Klaus Kohlmayr, Chief Evangelist of IDeaS share their thoughts. www.hitt.world
As usual, we round off our issue with lots of market news. The half-year results from Accor, Hilton and NH also give an indication of the economic mood in the market.
Till next Friday!
Yours, Maria Pütz-Willems
editor-in-chief
Your opinion? maria[at]hospitalityInside.com
